Heart & Clock
by HawkfrostsAvenger
Summary: A collection of short stories, drabbles, and poems told by the cast of Alice in the Country of Heart/Clover/Joker. Main characters featured are Peter, Julius, Blood, and Ace.
1. Lament of a Clock 1 Ace

A clock never changes. It will always turn in the same direction; one second will always be one second. A clock will sing its monotonous song until it dies. And even when it does die, a clock can easily be repaired.

Maybe with help though, even a clock can change.

I wrote this in science class a while ago as an introduction to an angst JuliusxAlice fic, but I thought it sounded more like Ace. I have two more short stories dedicated to Ace to post as well. Random fact- I didn't have to edit this at all to get it exactly 50 words. I wrote it like that without even trying XD

Disclaimer: I don't own this XD


	2. Murder 2 Ace

To kill such a person, one loved by everyone, would be so wonderful. To see the blood of one so cherished tipping my sword in the moonlight… Ah, what an accomplishment that would be.

But only she has a heartbeat, a melodious pounding in her chest like no other. With her one day, perhaps I can become free as well.

I can't take this story seriously thanks to Luna XD She read it and made commentary the whole time. Even though Ace is a pervert, he's still one of my favorites XD


	3. Envy 3 Ace

"Maybe I love you, as well," I said, my fingers running through her soft blond hair. "It's with you that I will one day be able to change."

I pressed my ear to her chest. Her eyes flew open wide as I listened to the soft pounding of her heart.

"I envy you because of that sound."

When she heard the sound of _my_ heart, I think she knew why.

XD This is the last one in a little set of Ace fics that I wrote. (lol they went from 50 words to 60 and then 70 XD) This one was inspired by the second volume of the manga XD


	4. Shattered 4 Julius

He had never stopped thinking of her. Not once, in all of the time that she was gone.

"_I'm happy to see you again,"_ she'd said to him, although her lies were terribly disguised beneath the obviously forced smile she wore.

"_Right…"_

And yet she'd given up on him. She'd gone straight to someone else.

"Was everything else a lie too?" he whispered to himself.

"_I love you."_

"_I don't know what I'd do without you."_

"_I'll miss you."_

Everything she'd said—was it all just to make him feel happy? He held his savior closer- the one thing that would bring him relief from the cruel world of his broken heart.

"I wonder what happens when the clockmaker's clock breaks."

_ Boom!_

The bullet fell to the floor, rolling into the pool of blood and clicking against the shattered clock.

/AN Suckish story is suckish XD I've been wanting to write something like this for a while- I feel bad for Julius because he's gone in Clover and you have the option of visiting Gray then. I dunno, maybe it's just me XD XD Anywho, this is 140 words.


	5. Blood 5 Julius

I held the clock in my hand tightly, watching as the smallest hand slowly traced the circle of numerals. As it passed twelve the minute hand began to follow after it; a never-ending game of tag that time played.

A clock is so beautiful, a beacon of both hope and darkness all at once. Each one was amazing, and yet so morbid like a sadistic god governing over the world.

I lay it on the desk, fixing my glasses before lifting the next shattered time-keeper from the box of cardboard on the ground beside me, immediately beginning my work. It was then that I heard a knock on the door, breaking the hypnotic spell of the ticking device and more than impatiently went to answer it.

He wore a mask and bloodied cloak, completely unrecognizable from his usual attire, and held out to me a sagging bag tied off untidily at the top. "Here ya' go, Julius!" he said cheerfully- seeming all too comfortable to be coated in another's blood.

I took the sack, muttering my thanks unintelligibly under my breath before heading back to my seat. He went back out to continue his collecting as I picked up my tools and poured the contents of his gift gently into the box.

Six clocks, spotted with crimson, added to the pile and I realized with a slight pang of guilt that perhaps it wasn't only he whose hands were stained by the lives of others.

/AN. Meh… I was bored ^^' Very bored. So yeah… the other guy is Ace in case you didn't know. I suppose this takes place after Alice showed up, since until then Julius himself had never really acknowledged the fact that life was so important… XD XD Reviews are welcome~!


	6. Rejection 6 Peter

There had been not a doubt in his mind as he had taken her hand. Not once had it ever crossed his mind that she'd reject him.

He watched as she vanished into the distance- close by her side the knight of hearts. And he wondered why he was so different from the others, and why she hated him so.

/AN. Still bored. XD I figured that Heart and Clock's been sort of centric to Julius and Ace, so I decided "Why not write a little short thing about Peter? He's adorable!" I flipped through Volume 5 of the manga and found the page where he's all depressed (Blood's a jerk in the manga, but I love him anyway XD He's got such an amazing hat, after all. Which is why I made one like it XD)


	7. Distant Gaze 7 Poem

You see her and smile as she comes towards you, the same blank expression on her face as usual- the one that you've always loved. You grab her hand softly and she stares at you, confused, and you lean down and kiss her. She squeezes your hand, kissing you back and you smile.

You turn your head slightly, seeing him in the distance watching with jealousy in his eyes. Before she even notices he was there he vanishes and with wide eyes she asks you what you had been looking at. You shake your head slowly, smiling once more and kissing her again. She smiles back at you and you forget that he'd even been there.

/AN/ XD Another one featuring Peter, this time played out in a slightly different style. I'm not sure who Alice is with in this one; use your imagination~!


	8. Untitled 8 Another Wonderland

I opened my eyes, sitting up and yawning. I got to my feet, put on my shoes- a typical 'morning' for me.

I walked out into the hallway, poking my head in Blood's room for a minute to find that he wasn't there. I sighed and continued down the hall towards the kitchen, wondering if maybe he'd gone to get some tea. There was no one there either.

I went outside after that, a bit worried because Blood had promised me that they wouldn't go to battle without informing me first. My heart sank when I didn't see the familiar faces of the twins standing in front of the gate. Usually they waited for me before going to see Boris.

I began on my way to Heart Castle. Ace stumbled upon the Hatter Mansion a lot so I figured that maybe he'd know where everyone went. I found myself running, but the castle gardens were empty of any guards or servants. Panicked, I turned and headed for the Amusement Park.

Still no one. It was night before I reached Clover Tower.

I ran inside, colliding with Gray much to my pleasure. "Miss Toki?" he asked in confusion. "What are you doing here?"

I shook my head, holding him closely and sobbing into his coat. "Everyone's gone… Where did they go, Gray?" I muttered pleadingly.

He bit his lip and stayed silent until I looked up at him. "They've returned to the Country of Hearts, Miss Toki."

"The Country of Hearts? What is that? Why did they go? Are they coming back?"

He squeezed my hand. "Eventually, they'll come here again…"

"How long is eventually?"

I waited for his answer, but it never came. "Why are you still here? What about Nightmare-sama, did he leave too?"

"No. Nightmare-sama and I will be staying here." He sighed. "You must be tired; come with me." I remained frozen to the spot, unable to move in all of my uncertainty and he lifted me off the ground gently, carrying me with him to a bedroom about the same size as mine at the Hatter Mansion. He set me down on the bed and I watched as he went back out into the hall, leaving me alone once more.

I closed my eyes, only to wake and find myself in the Hatter Mansion again. It had all been just a nightmare. I ran into Blood's room, looking around for him.

But I was still alone.

/AN/ Makes… not much sense ^^' This is just my way of coming up with ideas for Welcome to Wonderful Wonder World- writing random short stories about Toki XD I know this one's kind of different from the other chapters of Heart and Clock, but I consider Toki (for those of you who haven't read my other story, she's an outsider who fell down the rabbit hole and landed on Blood Dupre, shortly afterwards becoming a Hatter) a character from Heart/Clover/Joker as much as the characters actually in it XD (By the way, the title of this chapter is a song reference to the song "Untitled" by Simple Plan)


	9. Victorious 9 Poem

"alice, i love you," he whispers

Her eyes meet his in the kind of way

that tells him the same

"you know, i couldn't bear to be without you," he bluffs

and she falls for it, pulling him close

in a tight embrace

she can't see it, but his smile is so cruel

this kind of evil pretense brings him

such satisfaction

keeping her in the dark

without a clue that he has

but one intention

a little bird brings news in the evening

about what had been the goal all along

it was a success

a rival, enemy, nemesis in the game is gone-

Said his heart was stopped

by him alone

but he knows the truth

that the real reason he was gone

was all because of his lies

he, the hero, protagonist, wins

her heart is his and soon his shall be true

and the best thing is

that farce, the 'love' that kept her close

to bring him the change he so desired

hasn't gone

so the man with another grin so twisted

upon her lips left a kiss upon their next visit

victorious, he'd won.

AN/ I originally wrote this in second person but I decided to change it while typing XD I wanted to do something free-form instead of rhyming for once, especially after reading the Poetic Edda (I'm writing a research paper on vikings :3 It's fun :D)~3

With my last vague chapter like this a few people said it sounded like the person was Blood. I picture the man who died to be Peter and the 'protagonist' as either Blood or Ace, but it's up to you~ :3


	10. Outsider's Silver Tongue 10 Poem

I whisper your name

So softly no one hears it

I'm onto your game

Yet still I hide it, what a shame

Soft as feathers of a dove

The words you say with a silver tongue

Evidently I'm above

This concept you call "love"

Unsteady as you shake

I can hear your worried breath

Don't just wait to break

There's too much for me to take

Those honeyed words are far from true

Yet you use them to manipulate

I suppose it's what outsiders do

I suppose only I know the real you

Still you run back to me

Why, I don't understand

What is it that I cannot see

That makes me with you so happy to be

I thought I'd sigh with relief

When you're finally gone

But I'm in disbelief

For you've filled me with grief

Return to my side

Where you belong

Because of me those tears you cried

Maybe it was me who lied

Your name, so soft, so sweet

I say it, this time louder

My cry echoes through the midnight street

Only outsiders in this game can cheat

Alice, the one I had once so hated

Come back to me now

An eternity's longer than the time that I've waited

For you to return with breath so baited

Still, you're not here

I'll go find you myself

I give up, because I so want you near

There's nothing more in this game that I'll fear

When I finally find you

In your lonely world

All that you've been through

Everything that you knew

When on your lips I plant a kiss

Will it all return?

I hope that you'll remember this

I know I can't forget this bliss

How strange it is, I now see

How this game turned out

How did you turn out to be

The only thing that could've changed me?

AN/More random HNKNA poems XD Because I was bored in study hall. This pattern was so weird to write... I tried doing something different by repeating the rhyme in the end with the fifth stanza. I hope you like it :3 By the way, this was intended to be Blood's point of view. I just reread the entire manga series and decided that what I had written from class would work best with him. ~


	11. The Obvious Reality 11 Julius

He always knew, deep down inside, that she would never love him. He could tell from the start that no matter how kind she was nobody could love a man like him.

Still, that tiny useless glimmer of hope kept him going, when she said it didn't matter what he did, and that he was still a good person.

"Funny," he thought, "that she can lie so easily."

And as she walked away for the last time he reminded himself of his doubts, the obvious reality. Yet he couldn't shake the feeling that he could never give up on her.

/xD Not very great D/ I wrote it in less than two minutes though, so that should be taken into account XD TheVulpineHero1 has inspired me to try and do a drabble-a-day type thing :3 So, here it is. Exactly 100 words, surprisingly enough (on the first try, too lol). This was intended to be Julius, by the way.

Reviews are awesome :3


	12. Hold Your Dream Near 12 Peter

Because I love you, Alice dear

Because I so greatly want you near

If only you were at my side

From my arms you needn't hide

I thought for sure you'd love me back

But I can't force feelings you lack

So I'll wait here for you to come

Be it more than a year or some

Cycles vanish into the void

My heart has been all but destroyed

Patience, Peter, I remind myself

For patience is always rewarded with wealth

You've lived at the palace for over a year

I am so glad to have you here

Even if I can't hold your hand

I can dream of you in this land

But the upon a sunny day

I encounter you along my way

Hurt and crying, something's wrong

So I offer to tag along

I comfort you as best I can

Without implying I'm your man

Because that upsets you even more

And I've come to realize I'm sure

I offer a smile, and take your hand

Because my dear, this is Wonderland

A wonderful place where dreams soar

And I want you to be happy forever more

And unlike before you don't turn away

You thank me and stay with me the rest of the way

As the weeks go on you start staying close

Stirring up all of my once shattered hope

I say it once more reflexively

But forced on you I don't want it to be

No matter what, though, I'll always love you

And I want you to know that my love's true

This time is different than all of the rest

The kiss on my cheek you place is the best

Thank you, you tell me, but I don't know why

Because it's thanks to you that I touched the sky

Welcome to Wonderland, Alice my dear

Where you can always hold your dream near

No matter how the odds may seem

A happy ending is the best kind of dream

AN/ Spontaneous Peter poemmmmm. I wanted to do something happy with him for a change, so poof, here it is! XD


	13. Just Give Me a Smile 13 Julius

I've known now for far too long that my desire is in vain. Since that day you came here, when I touched your delicate hands I knew I wanted no one else but you, the Outsider.

But in your eyes there is no room for me, not for the clock maker. There's only one man you can see, and that's fine, because I never expected your affections. I am content having known you; as long as you're happy I can be too.

Alice, I hope your life may be prosperous. I love you, so please just give me your smile.

/AN: Woo, Julius drabbles again XD I wrote this in Biology… because that's what Harus do when we should be focusing xD


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